From the Alliance for Water Efficiency:
The WaterSense® program, a voluntary public-private partnership that has saved American consumers more than $46 billion on their water and energy bills since 2006, is about to become part of federal law for the first time ever.
That important change is included in America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, which has now passed in both the House and Senate and is on its way to the President for his expected signature into law. This legislation lifts WaterSense from its status as a “discretionary” program at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to federal legal status.
The Alliance for Water Efficiency (AWE) was instrumental in the creation of the WaterSense program and has been a major supporter of the program ever since. Along with its members and partners, AWE has been a leader in urging Congress to make WaterSense part of federal law.
When signed by the President, the water infrastructure bill will incorporate WaterSense into the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act. (42 U.S.C. 6201) as a new Section 324b. It will then qualify for annual appropriations rather than having to rely on the EPA administrator’s discretionary funds each year. Until separate funding measures are enacted, both the House and Senate have included instructions in the pending EPA spending bills directing the EPA to continue funding WaterSense from available funds.
“We are ecstatic that Congress is giving its stamp of approval to WaterSense,” said Mary Ann Dickinson, AWE president and CEO. “We continue to believe that this successful public/private partnership is the most effective and efficient way to help Americans save water by choosing water efficient products and services certified to carry the WaterSense label.”